George Will interestingly contends that the most valuable rules in baseball are unwritten and relate to manners.  Will's leading example is Alex Bregman carrying his bat down to first base on his home run trot during the World Series, Juan Soto copying that on his subsequent homer, and both managers apologizing after the game for the breaches of etiquette.  It's often called showboating or showing up the other team's pitcher. I personally think Bregman was so caught up in the moment that he just forgot to throw down the bat.  When he became aware that he still had it in his hand and how bad it looked, he didn't know how to get rid of it without looking even worse.  He apologized after the game, said there was no excuse for it, and took ownership of an action that clearly looked like showboating.  Had he instead just grinningly hugged and kissed the bat while jogging around the bases, chances are, everyone would have...(Read Full Post)